Deathstroke and Nightwing Dance It Out Courtesy of Prinze, Jr.'s GEGGHEAD

The ongoing struggle between Slade Wilson and Dick Grayson traces all the way back to New Teen Titans (1980) #2. Often adversaries, sometimes allies, but always rivals, Deathstroke and Nightwing have spent years trying to establish dominance over one another whether it's through elaborate schemes or hand-to-hand. But there is one form of combat Deathstroke and Nightwing have yet to engage until now. DANCE BATTLE! Wait, dance battle? Sigh.

Brought to you by Freddie Prinze, Jr.'s GEGGHEAD, Deathstroke and Nightwing come face-to-face to settle the score by...dancing. Deathstroke portrayed Prinze and Nightwing, played by Jon Lee Brody, take their bad blood to the streets to get down. The GEGGHEAD video entitled, Nightwing and Deathstroke Bust a Move is posted below. Enjoy?

Funko Dorbz 2 Pack: Nightwing and Deathstroke

When I post about Deathstroke-related merchandise, I like to focus newer items or even ones that have yet to be released because older pieces tend to be increasingly entangled in the "eBay Effect" of artificial price inflation that plagues the secondary market. The eBay Effect really kicks in when the merchandise has a limited production run or has an exclusive retail availability. Funko had entered into many such arrangements with WalMart, Target, and Toys "Я" Us leading to some exclusive figures fetching ridiculous prices in the online aftermarket. 

Now imagine a collectible that was only available for sale at a convention, only 1,500 of them were made, and was only on sale for four days. OUCH! Logic and history tell us that such an item would bring hundreds, if not thousands of dollars online. But what if I told you that I have routinely found this item of eBay for as low as $20.00 USD? Brand new, the Funko Dorbz 2 Pack: Nightwing and Deathstroke sets were sold exclusively at the 2017 San Diego Comic-Con, and had only a limited 1,500 unit production run. Exclusive availability, short availability time, and a microscopic production run should have sent this item through the secondary market's figurative roof, but this item can still be acquired at a more-than-reasonable price by the savvy collector.

There are some other aspects of this set worth noting. While there are other versions of Nightwing available in the Dorbz collection, this set is the only way to get Nightwing in his original George Pérez designed "Judas Contract" era costume, which debuted in Tales of the Teen Titans (1980) #44. Furthermore, this two-pack set contains the only version of Deathstroke currently in the Funko Dorbz line. So if you ever wanted a semi-rare Deathstroke collectible, but were never willing to take out a second mortgage, the Funko Dorbz 2 Pack: Nightwing and Deathstroke set is a great way to make it happen without breaking the bank.

DEATHSTROKE BY: ColourOnly85

There are times that I am in awe of the kind of work that can be found on DeviantArt, and the pieces I have posted below qualify as some of that work. A UK artist identified only as ColourOnly85 has produced a large, and I mean a large collection of vector abstracts depicting a plethora of DC Comics characters both heroes and villains. I have posted seven of these inspired pieces below that are in some way related to Deathstroke the Terminator. Be sure to check out ColourOnly85's DeviantArt Gallery at this link for more examples of his work.

84 Deathstroke

169 Ravager

101 Damian Wayne

48 Cheshire

20 Nightwing

12 Green Arrow

15 Deadshot

DEATHSTROKE COVERED: Nightwing (1996) #113 by Hester and Parks

To say that Deathstroke's relationship with Nightwing is complicated is an understatement. Originally their relationship was simple as Deathstroke wanted to kill the former Robin and the all of Teen Titans after he assumed the H.I.V.E. contract of the original Ravager (his son, Grant) when he died battling the team. Over time their relationship has ranged from an uneasy alliance to full-on teammates, and then back to being at each other's throats. At one of the more amicable times in their history, Slade arranged for Nightwing to train his daughter, Rose, the fourth Ravager to act in a more heroic/controlled manner than she had to that point. The cover to Nightwing (1996) #113 alludes to this arrangement with the text "Deathstroke's Dark Knight," but the art conveys the notion that something deeper is in play as Deathstroke literally has Nightwing in the palm of his hand. This cover was brought to us by penciler, Phil Hester and inker, Andre Parks. The cover is posted below both with and without title graphics.

Art by Phil Hester and Andre Parks

NIghtwing's Who's Who Entry from 1986

When Dick Grayson debuted in 1938's in the pages of Detective Comics (1937) #38, he originated the role of Batman's colorfully dressed teen sidekick, Robin. Grayson would carry this mantle until 1984's "The Judas Contract" story where he (along with Marv Wolfman and George Pérez) forged a new crime-fighting identity in Nightwing, during which his rivalry with Deathstroke really took off. I know that DC and Comixology recently re-released a digitally remastered version of the series, but posted below is a scan of the original 1986 Who's Who entry from issue #17 (XVII) featuring art by the Nightwing persona's co-creator, the legendary George Pérez.

Imaginext's Justice League DC Comics Slade & Nightwing Two-Pack

Fisher-Price price is famous for producing toys for really young children (0-2 years of age), but through its Imaginext brand Fisher-Price is targeting a slightly older demographic in the "critical" 3-8 year range. Imaginext has partnered with DC Comics to produce the Justice League DC Comics line of figures. Among the many sets for sale is the kid-friendly named Slade & Nightwing two-figure set. Product details from Fisher-Price.com are listed below.

What happens when bad guy DC Comics Slade meets up with DC Super Hero Nightwing? Only your little one knows which of these Justice League figures will prevail!There are always lots of new adventures to imagine and scenarios to play out with this two-pack of cool Justice League characters! Imaginext poseable action figures are the perfect size for kids to control the action. 

Features

• Kids will love pitting the DC Super Hero against the villain, and deciding who wins and who loses!

• Includes two figures: DC Comics Slade with his cool sword and Nightwing with his staff

• Look for more Imaginext Justice League superhero figures, vehicles and play sets

(Each sold separately and subject to availability.)

This product is sold exclusively at Target.